Promoting the profession
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Sick of being asked what you do for a living?
Sick of hearing 'Sorry, you're a WHAT?'
Would you like to go to a party and be the centre of attention?
Would you like employers to ring you up and beg you to work for them?
YOU NEED TO PROMOTE YOUR PROFESSION !!
Welcome to the Abode Of Darkness - the ASTC (Vic) technical communicators' marketing page. There are many things that technical communicators can do to raise the profile of the profession and their own businesses - things that don't take a lot of time, but that make a lot of difference to the bottom line!
Technical writing was recently reported by Money magazine (US) and Salary.com to be the 13th "best" job to hold in America. Scott Abel of the Content Wrangler provides further comments and links to the report.
Talk to friends, relatives and total strangers about what you do, and how useful it is. Word of mouth is one of the most effective forms of promotion. People are more inclined to trust information that comes from someone they know personally or professionally. When information is offered outside a sale situation, it is seen as being more credible. You wouldn't believe a used car salesman who extolled the virtues of a 1973 Corolla - but if someone in your office casually mentioned that their 1973 Corolla was the best car ever, you'd probably accept that information as truthful and worthwhile.
Presenting a consistent image to the world is the marketing equivalent of parallel structure. If you look and speak like an engineer, very few people will doubt your ability to write engineering manuals. However, if you look like an ski instructor, talk like a wharfie and hand out bright pink business cards, you will generally find it more difficult to convince people that you can write engineering manuals.
Advertising materials are an extension of your image, and also an opportunity to display your professional competence. Double and triple check your business cards and letters of introduction for spelling errors, poor grammar and errors of fact. Ask a friend to review them, or even consider hiring an editor! And get your materials professionally printed on good quality paper or cardboard. Employers always notice these things - especially so when the person presenting the business card is trying to sell themselves as a skilled professional writer.
Think about the audience you are writing for, just as you would for a manual. For example, if you give most of your promotional material to Chief Information Officers:
- What sort of information do they want when they are looking for technical writers?
- What sort of language do they expect?
Should you take the opportunity to impress them with your knowledge of technical terms? Maybe if you are not very technology minded, your misuse of technical jargon will cost you the job - in which case, avoid it and play up your research skills.
You may find it worthwhile doing a short course in marketing for small business. There are many courses available - ask around and see if anyone can recommend one. A good course should cover pricing strategies, defining your product, promoting your product, the role of location in your business success, how to develop a marketing plan for your business, and how to evaluate the plan to ensure that it is delivering a real benefit.